Punjab Government is gearing up to take its tourists on a trip to the historic and religious locations in the holy city of Amritsar. Steering the holiday-makers clear from possibilities of exploitation by unscrupulous agents, it is accelerating towards the launch of double-decker buses for the sightseers soon. Already working towards tapping the tourist inflow in the city by giving special attention to Amritsar city, the Punjab Heritage and Tourism Promotion Board (PHTPB) has decided to run the double-decker buses in the city. For the same, the State Government has also given its go-ahead. “Our main aim is to provide the visitors with a comfortable and suitable transportation facility, thus saving them from the taxi or auto-rickshaw drivers who charge hefty sums,” a senior PHTPB official told The Pioneer.
The official said that the buses are expected to hit the streets from June next year. The project will be implemented in phase-wise manner, and in the first phase, four buses will be on road, added the official.
The buses will take the tourists across the Amritsar city and the nearby places of interest covering the religious places, city is known for, like Harmandir Sahib (Golden Temple), Durgiana Temple, besides other historical places. It will also cover the world famous retreat ceremony at India-Pakistan international border at Attari. “You cannot ignore the food aspect if you are visiting Punjab, especially Amritsar. The touring route will be chalked in a manner that the places known for its Amritsari food will also be covered other than tourist places for a complete experience,” said the official.
“The buses will be stationed at different locations, which would be the start and end points. After its day-long tour across the city, the bus will drop from tourists from the location where they started,” said the official. PHTPB official said that as per the preliminary decision, the buses will run from Amritsar international airport, Jallianwala Bagh, and from the Tourism Department’s office near railway station.
The buses will have trained tourist guides, and “effort would be made to offer assistance in different foreign languages, especially the ones which are largely spoken”.
The Board was also mulling over starting the hop-on-hop-off buses in the city for the tourism purpose. The State Government is already focussing on developing Amritsar as a major tourist attraction. It has made a provision of Rs500 crore in its annual budget for 2015-16 for different development works in the city.
Besides, Amritsar has also been selected by the Centre, among 12 cities across the country, under its ambitious National Heritage Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY) aimed at conserving and preserving its heritage character. Other than its heritage sites, including historical and religious, the city’s traditional cuisine, art and craft, trades will also be developed and promoted under the scheme.
Known for its lip-smacking Amritsari delicacies, the PHTPB has already tapping on visiting food lovers by preparing a scrumptious food trail map for them by chalking out a list of famous eateries, covering almost the entire authentic Amritsari food, within the city — rightly known as “food heaven”. Besides its “old, traditional, and popular” flavours, Amritsar’s phulkari, galeecha (carpets), silver jewellery and other products, engraved metal products like brass doors, kalash (vessel), among other things are also trademark of this ancient city.